The moment their eyes met, Song Tingye felt as if his heart had been pierced right through. An overwhelmingly powerful sense of shock shot through him like a bullet.
He was very certain that he had never seen this little girl selling tofu before.
But the moment he saw her, an intense, indescribable sense of familiarity washed over him.
It was like reuniting with an old friend.
Eager for answers, Song Tingye asked anxiously, Sis, who is she?
Song Xinya: Her name is Jian Yiyi. I've only seen her four times so far.
Song Tingye: Why do I feel so familiar with her the moment I see her?
Song Xinya: I felt the exact same way the first time I laid eyes on her.
The siblings turned their heads at the same time and looked at each other. Their eyes met, and their gazes revealed the exact same thought...
Song Tingye couldn't wait: Come on, let's go take a look.
The siblings walked over to the tofu stand.
Jian Yiyi brought out the chairs she had prepared earlier and placed them in front of Song Xinya and Song Tingye: Please, have a seat.
She looked at Song Tingye: Are you Teacher Song's younger brother?
Yes, Song Tingye said, looking straight at her. Actually, I also have a twin sister, but she went missing when we were three.
Jian Yiyi asked in surprise: You still haven't found her?
Song Tingye: No. We've tried everything, but there are absolutely no clues.
Jian Yiyi: That's truly heartbreaking. You must miss your sister very much.
Song Tingye studied her face and replied: Yeah, my sister and I both miss her terribly.
Jian Yiyi: I completely understand the feeling of losing a family member, because I've grown up without a mother.
Perhaps out of mutual sympathy and shared empathy, this was the first time Jian Yiyi had voluntarily brought up her family background.
Following her lead, Song Xinya asked: Is your father still around?
He is, Jian Yiyi said, a guarded expression appearing on her face.
After two probing attempts, Song Xinya could see that the word father was like a taboo to Jian Yiyi; she was highly evasive when it came to her dad.
Jian Yiyi changed the subject and asked: Are you going to tutor me here?
The environment here was damp and stiflingly hot, and Song Tingye hated the heat, but he replied: Tutoring you here works for me.
Jian Yiyi: Thank you. What should I call you?
Song Tingye: Just call me brother.
Jian Yiyi could feel that he had a sunny, outgoing, and overly familiar personality, but she was not an extroverted girl. She couldn't bring herself to call a boy she had just met brother.
Song Xinya: His full name is Song Tingye. You can just call him Xiaoye.
Jian Yiyi silently repeated it to herself: Xiaoye.
Song Tingye: Brother.
Jian Yiyi smiled. He seemed to really want her to call him brother.
Song Tingye: Which subject are you weakest in?
Jian Yiyi: I'm relatively weak in math, physics, and chemistry.
Song Tingye secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness she wasn't bad at literature.
Jian Yiyi: Sometimes my essays go off-topic.
Song Tingye: ...I can't help you with that, because mine go off-topic even worse than yours.
Jian Yiyi: Then will you help me with math, physics, and chemistry?
Song Tingye: No problem, leave it to me.
Jian Yiyi took out her Five Years of College Entrance Exams, Three Years of Mock Tests workbook and started doing problems. Whenever she encountered one she didn't know, she asked Song Tingye.
It had to be said, being ranked first in the grade at Jingbei City's best public high school really carried a lot of weight.
When Song Tingye explained the problems, he made the complex simple and drew parallels easily. He could explain eight different ways to solve a single problem, linking all the related knowledge points together clearly and thoroughly.
Jian Yiyi marveled: I think you explain things even better than my teacher.
Song Tingye: When a teacher gives a lesson, they face a whole class of students and have to consider everyone's comprehension levels. It definitely can't compare to me tutoring you one-on-one, which is more targeted and detailed.
The young man was full of high spirits: The university I get into in the future will definitely be better than your teacher's.
Jian Yiyi: My math teacher graduated from a Project 211 university.
Song Tingye: I'm going to get into either Tsinghua or Peking University.
Jian Yiyi looked at Song Tingye with admiration: You're so amazing.
Song Tingye: Smart enough to dodge the rain, quick-witted as can be; sleeping soundly through the night, outstanding as you see.
Trust Brother Ye, with me tutoring you, your grades will definitely bloom like sesame flowers, rising higher with every step.
Jian Yiyi nodded emphatically: Mhm! I believe you!
She lowered her head again and continued working on the problems, her small face tense with concentration.
While the two youngsters studied, Song Xinya stood to the side helping to sell tofu.
Before they knew it, the whole morning had quickly passed by.
Standing by the tofu stand, Song Xinya, with her fair skin, beautiful face, and slender figure, effortlessly outshone everything else around her.
Passing men and women couldn't help but look toward the tofu stand.
Men who normally didn't even like eating tofu were lining up to buy it.
The tofu that usually took more than a day to sell out was completely gone in just one morning.
At lunchtime, Song Xinya said: Today I'm taking you guys to the most expensive restaurant in Jingbei City for a feast.
As a busy food enthusiast, Song Tingye said: Awesome, I love eating expensive food.
Jian Yiyi said weakly: Let me treat you guys.
Song Tingye: At the most expensive restaurant in Jingbei City, a simple green salad costs a thousand yuan. A meal there will cost tens of thousands at least. You couldn't make that much money even if you sold tofu for three months.
Girl, if you want to treat us to a feast there, you'd better go sell a kidney first.
Jian Yiyi blushed deep red with embarrassment: What kind of green salad costs a thousand yuan? Isn't it just a few vegetable leaves mixed with some dressing? Why is it so expensive? Isn't that a total rip-off?
Song Tingye: You're paying for the prestige.
He looked at Song Xinya: Sis, are you really taking us to Jingbei's most expensive restaurant for a feast? One meal there is enough to cover Grandma's medical bills. Doesn't that hurt your wallet?
Song Xinya: I'm not the one paying, so why would it hurt?
Song Tingye and Jian Yiyi asked in unison: Who's paying?
Song Xinya: Song Tingye, explain one more problem to Jian Yiyi.
Song Tingye: Weren't we going to eat? Why are you making me explain problems again?
Jian Yiyi obediently opened her Five Years of College Entrance Exams, Three Years of Mock Tests workbook, and Song Tingye sat beside her to guide her.
The two sat close together. While he explained the problem, their heads were almost touching.
At the moment they were closest, Song Xinya snapped a picture of them.
After the problem was explained, Song Xinya led Song Tingye and Jian Yiyi to the Jingbei Grand Hotel.
Sitting in Jingbei City's most luxurious restaurant, Song Xinya posted the photo she had just taken to her social media feed.
Caption: Hungry hungry, food food
Location: Jingbei Grand Hotel
Settings: Visible only to Jin Ruizhi
In less than half an hour, the door of the Jingbei Grand Hotel was pushed open with a bang, and Jin Ruizhi rushed in like a whirlwind.
Song Xinya casually flipped through the menu with her pale, slender fingers: Young Master Jin, what brings you here?
He couldn't exactly say he was there to mooch a meal, or else he would definitely be kicked out.
Jin Ruizhi: I'm here to treat you all to a meal.
